1
|
Li X, Chan YT, Jiang Y. Development of an image processing software for quantification of histological calcification staining images. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0286626. [PMID: 37797053 PMCID: PMC10553316 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0286626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Quantification of the histological staining images gives important insights in biomedical research. In wet lab, it is common to have some stains off the target to become unwanted noisy stains during the generation of histological staining images. The current tools designed for quantification of histological staining images do not consider such situations; instead, the stained region is identified based on assumptions that the background is pure and clean. The goal of this study is to develop a light software named Staining Quantification (SQ) tool which could handle the image quantification job with features for removing a large amount of unwanted stains blended or overlaid with Region of Interest (ROI) in complex scenarios. The core algorithm was based on the method of higher order statistics transformation, and local density filtering. Compared with two state-of-art thresholding methods (i.e. Otsu's method and Triclass thresholding method), the SQ tool outperformed in situations such as (1) images with weak positive signals and experimental caused dirty stains; (2) images with experimental counterstaining by multiple colors; (3) complicated histological structure of target tissues. The algorithm was developed in R4.0.2 with over a thousand in-house histological images containing Alizarin Red (AR) and Von Kossa (VK) staining, and was validated using external images. For the measurements of area and intensity in total and stained region, the average mean of difference in percentage between SQ and ImageJ were all less than 0.05. Using this as a criterion of successful image recognition, the success rate for all measurements in AR, VK and external validation batch were above 0.8. The test of Pearson's coefficient, difference between SQ and ImageJ, and difference of proportions between SQ and ImageJ were all significant at level of 0.05. Our results indicated that the SQ tool is well established for automatic histological staining image quantification.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xinrui Li
- School of Medicine, Northwest University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yau Tsz Chan
- Faculty of Medicine, School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine, Ministry of Education, School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong, China
- Center for Neuromusculoskeletal Restorative Medicine, Hong Kong Science Park, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong, China
| | - Yangzi Jiang
- Faculty of Medicine, School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine, Ministry of Education, School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong, China
- Center for Neuromusculoskeletal Restorative Medicine, Hong Kong Science Park, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong, China
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of Orthopaedics & Traumatology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Bonavita CM, White TM, Francis J, Farrell HE, Davis-Poynter NJ, Cardin RD. The Viral G-Protein-Coupled Receptor Homologs M33 and US28 Promote Cardiac Dysfunction during Murine Cytomegalovirus Infection. Viruses 2023; 15:711. [PMID: 36992420 PMCID: PMC10054303 DOI: 10.3390/v15030711] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 03/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a ubiquitous pathogen that infects the majority of the world population and causes lifelong latent infection. HCMV has been shown to exacerbate cardiovascular diseases, including myocarditis, vascular sclerosis, and transplant vasculopathy. Recently, we have shown that murine CMV (MCMV) recapitulates the cardiovascular dysfunction observed in patients with HCMV-induced myocarditis. To understand the viral mechanisms involved in CMV-induced heart dysfunction, we further characterized cardiac function in response to MCMV and examined virally encoded G-protein-coupled receptor homologs (vGPCRs) US28 and M33 as potential factors that promote infection in the heart. We hypothesized that the CMV-encoded vGPCRs could exacerbate cardiovascular damage and dysfunction. Three viruses were used to evaluate the role of vGPCRs in cardiac dysfunction: wild-type MCMV, a M33-deficient virus (∆M33), and a virus with the M33 open reading frame (ORF) replaced with US28, an HCMV vGPCR (i.e., US28+). Our in vivo studies revealed that M33 plays a role in promoting cardiac dysfunction by increasing viral load and heart rate during acute infection. During latency, ΔM33-infected mice demonstrated reduced calcification, altered cellular gene expression, and less cardiac hypertrophy compared with wild-type MCMV-infected mice. Ex vivo viral reactivation from hearts was less efficient in ΔM33-infected animals. HCMV protein US28 expression restored the ability of the M33-deficient virus to reactivate from the heart. US28+ MCMV infection caused damage to the heart comparable with wild-type MCMV infection, suggesting that the US28 protein is sufficient to complement the function of M33 in the heart. Altogether, these data suggest a role for vGPCRs in viral pathogenesis in the heart and thus suggest that vGPCRs promote long-term cardiac damage and dysfunction.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cassandra M. Bonavita
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
| | - Timothy M. White
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
| | - Joseph Francis
- Department of Comparative Biological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
| | - Helen E. Farrell
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, Brisbane 4072, Australia
| | | | - Rhonda D. Cardin
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
White TM, Stanfield BA, Bonavita CM, Rudd JS, Cardin RD. Development of a mouse salivary gland-derived mesenchymal cell line for immunological studies of murine cytomegalovirus. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0265479. [PMID: 35976883 PMCID: PMC9385033 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0265479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The salivary glands are a crucial site of replication for human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) and its murine counterpart, murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV). Studies of MCMV often involve the use of BALB/c strain mice, but most in vitro assays are carried out in the NIH 3T3 cell line, which is derived from Swiss Albino mice. This report describes a BALB/c-derived mouse salivary gland cell line immortalized using the SV40 large T antigen. Cells stained positive for PDGFR1 and negative for E-cadherin and PECAM-1, indicating mesenchymal origin. This cell line, which has been named murine salivary gland mesenchymal (mSGM), shows promise as a tool for ex vivo immunological assays due to its MHC haplotype match with the BALB/c mouse strain. In addition, plaque assays using mSGM rather than NIH 3T3 cells are significantly more sensitive for detecting low concentrations of MCMV particles. Finally, it is demonstrated that mSGM cells express all 3 BALB/c MHC class I isotypes and are susceptible to T cell-mediated ex vivo cytotoxicity assays, leading to many possible uses in immunological studies of MCMV.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Timothy M. White
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America
| | - Brent A. Stanfield
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America
| | - Cassandra M. Bonavita
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America
| | - Jared S. Rudd
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America
| | - Rhonda D. Cardin
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Sakai C, Mikawa M, Yamamoto T, Uchida T, Nakamura Y, Akase H, Suetomi T, Tominaga N, Inamitsu M, Oda T, Okamura T, Kobayashi S, Yano M. Dantrolene reduces platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and neointimal formation following vascular injury in mice. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2022; 623:51-58. [PMID: 35872542 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2022.07.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Dantrolene is a ryanodine receptor blocker that is used clinically for treatment of malignant hyperthermia. This study was conducted using murine aortic vascular smooth muscle cells (MOVAS) and a mouse arterial injury model to investigate the inhibitory effect of dantrolene on smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration. We investigated whether dantrolene suppressed platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-induced vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration in vitro. The effect of dantrolene on smooth muscle phenotype was evaluated using immunostaining. In addition, smooth muscle cell proliferation and phenotype switching were tested by applying dantrolene around blood vessels using a mouse arterial injury model. Dantrolene inhibited PDGF-induced cell proliferation and migration of MOVAS. Dantrolene also inhibited the switch from contractile to synthetic phenotype both in vitro and in vivo. Dantrolene is effective at inhibiting vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation, migration, and neointimal formation following arterial injury in mice.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chihiro Sakai
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Mei Mikawa
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Takeshi Yamamoto
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan.
| | - Tomoyuki Uchida
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Yoshihide Nakamura
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Hideaki Akase
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Takeshi Suetomi
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Naoomi Tominaga
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Masako Inamitsu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Tetsuro Oda
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Takayuki Okamura
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Shigeki Kobayashi
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| | - Masafumi Yano
- Department of Medicine and Clinical Science, Division of Cardiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine 1-1-1 Minamikogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan
| |
Collapse
|